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Monday, June 27, 2011

the Good, the Bad & the Kind

Do you believe in magic, miracles or voodoo?

If you know me I’m sure you are familiar with a support group I attend with other super-moms of the especially needy. For well over a year we have been meeting in North Denver monthly for a little soul food to harmonize a night away from our daily bliss. Unlikely to have ever broken bread together before our lives became rather parallel to each others we have grown a relationship as complex and unexpected as our lives and families are.

You just don’t imagine the life we’ve all been blessed with, ever. Not even in your wildest dreams do you touch on this lovely experience. How we found each other and where we’ve all been since is as mystical as the rest.

Around a year ago Jenny announced a project she was embracing called Ben’s Bells. She explained a little about what it was, why she chose it and what she needed to do in order to bring it to Colorado (it is a Tucson organization). Inspired to be the change we all desire, we cheered her on and helped with what we could.

To spread a message that the power of random acts of kindness can change our world is the initiative of this mission. This is achieved with beautiful ceramic bells randomly hung in our communities, built in and by the communities they decorate. They each have a message to take it home, hang it up and be kind. Even passive change takes work and Jenny has made this wonderful dream come to fruition; kind enough to bring us along for the ride even. Nice friend to have, eh?

What is this Ben’s Bells business anyways? It’s my voodoo, spiritual magic! I’ll share how my personal experience has panned out to date.

On a mid-May Saturday morning I loaded mom and the girls in the car for a trip to Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison. It was their first trip to one of the most sacred, of sacred places, in Colorado. That is a nice first sign to a good day, especially when the weather is gloomier than we all had hoped. We hung out, had some breakfast and chit chatted while watching the 50 different boot camps taking place, waiting for the entire crew to gather.

Jeanette (Ben’s mom) gave us a nice talk about the organization, the rules and the spiritual experience many have hanging the bells. All the while mom chased Aliza as she practiced boot camp and mastering the stairs of Red Rocks. After that we were off, to hang those beautiful bells.

As I hung bells I explored the meaning of kindness in a much simpler way. I concentrated on what and who has defined kind in my life since being forever turned upside down?

Yes, it’s the little things (often from strangers) that keep me going and growing daily. Holding the door or carrying show and tell for me while I tote 35 lbs of love on each hip, smiling when most look with pity, hugs, treating my disabled child as you would a typical child; the list of simplicities goes on and on. That’s a good thing!

Spiritual experience indeed, I subscribe to the church of kindness for guidance from now on. Ben has already reminded me that patience is a virtue, that we are amongst very complacent people and his bells will find their rightful owner, in due time.

As I hung these beauties all over the Northern Front Range I finally let a little bit of my guilt go; the stuff that comes with having a life so dependent on others to live it meaningfully that I sometimes feel incapable. That feeling that you can never give back enough, hopefully continues to fade with the growth of the community art project that is now here in Colorado. Thank you Ben’s Bells, for helping me pay it forward!

1 comment:

No, thank YOU for being involved, and helping spread the message and help us along as we start things up here! It will be a wild ride, and I'm so happy to have my supermoms on the ride with me, giving us something besides our crazy lives to focus on - something that gives back.

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